"Animals are my friends and I don't eat my friends" was how George Bernard Shaw explained his vegetarian diet. Albert Einstein said that the adoption of "the vegetarian manner of living...would most beneficially influence the lot of mankind."

Whether you are interested in vegetarianism because of lofty moral ideals such as those held by Shaw and Einstein, or because you just want to lose weight and feel better physically you are not alone. Throughout the world there is a growing interest in vegetarianism.

Let's take a look at the main reasons for being a vegetarian.

Physical: There is a long list of modern diseases that are aggravated by meat eating: colon cancer, heart disease, kidney disease, arthritis and gout top the list.

In addition, many toxins accumulate in meat, as animals are on the top of an agricultural food chain that is heavily dependent on chemicals and pesticides. Added to the chemicals of the environment, are the hormones secreted into an animal's bloodstream as it faces death. "The flesh of an animal is loaded with toxic blood and other waste products," was how the Nutrition Institute of America described it.

If that isn't enough to make you think about trying a vegetarian diet, there is more

You Can Live Without Meat: You can get all the vitamins, minerals and even protein that you need without eating any meat products. A diet of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and dairy products will certainly provide you with what you need. And such a diet is not boring. Have you ever tasted an elaborate vegetarian Indian dinner, or vegetarian Chinese cuisine, or vegetarian Italian food?

While it is possible to be vegetarian and also be fat, it is much harder! A vegetarian diet is not a fad diet that you will do for a period, but something you can follow and enjoy for your whole life.

But there are more reasons why a vegetarian diet makes sense.

Moral and Social Reasons: We all love our cats, dogs, and house pets. We regard them as beautiful creatures who are part of our family. Other animals, cows, sheep, pigs, chickens ducks, etc. are also beautiful creatures and they too want to live. If we can live our lives without killing them, then why should we?

Finally, our Mother earth is small and has limited resources. Feeding humanity with meat takes a big toll on the environment. It makes more sense for us to get nourishment from plant proteins rather than growing grains and then feeding it to animals. Every year millions of people die of hunger in the developing countries, while thousands die of avoidable diseases in the developed countries due to overeating the wrong kind of food. Surely, in the 21st Century, we can do better than this. The spread of the vegetarian diet may be the best way to correct this crazy imbalance.

So, think about it, and try out a vegetarian diet. It will help you to slim down, feel great physically and connect you with the other living beings on planet Earth.

About the author:

Dada Vedaprajinananda is yoga teacher and writer. He is the author of "Yoga Weight Loss Secrets" , available at http://www.yogaweightlosssecrets.com and is the publisher of the Life Weight Loss Article Directory - http://www.lifeweightloss.com - where you can find articles and information about health, fitness and weight loss.